Two crimes that have taken place in Fakenham's market place have gone unrecorded after a CCTV system faltered.

Cameras on Fakenham’s Market Place and Bridge Street suffered intermittent interference and signal issues which meant two incidents, including an assault and an affray, failed to be recorded between Christmas 2021 and the end of March this year.

Fakenham Town Council, which is responsible for the management of the CCTV, is currently in the process of upgrading its equipment, as well as installing new cameras.

Beat manager for Fakenham Police, Richard Dawson, spoke at April’s full council meeting, saying that the cameras failed to record these incidents. He added that it hindered the investigations, but did not stop them.

A spokesperson for the town council said: “Our contractor is investigating the problems urgently and hopes to have the system fully functional shortly.

“We are expecting full-fibre broadband in the town later this year, intermittent problems with the signal from the CCTV cameras to the monitoring team should be a thing of the past.”

A spokesperson for Norfolk Police added: “We have spoken to the town council about the movement of the cameras and continue to work with them to ensure the cameras continue to be effective at recording, detecting and preventing crime.”

Geoff Saunders operates Paperklip on Bridge Street, he said news of the CCTV is why businesses have their own.

“We have our own cameras and alarm system, and this is why, so we can cater for ourselves because you never know what is around the corner and you need to protect your business," he said.

“Hopefully, the council can get it updated, as it needs to be operating in a correct and efficient way.”

Denise Benbow runs Benbows on the corner of the Market Place. She said since the cameras were installed last year, her greengrocers have had fewer incidents taking place, having previously suffered from a spate of damage to the building.

“Before the cameras were installed, we were having our windows smashed in, and had nothing to fall back on,” she said.

“Since being installed, they work as a good deterrent to this sort of damage.

“They are also vital, especially with people out on a Saturday night. Let's hope they get them repaired soon.”